mentir

\mɑ̃.tiʁ\

/\mɑ̃.tiʁ\/ verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“mentir” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #4,350 in French word frequency and used as a verb.

#4,350
frequency rank, French
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Ne pas dire la vérité ; dire quelque chose de contraire à la vérité ; cacher la vérité ; induire volontairement en erreur.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

mentir vs métis
50% similar
mentir vs munir
67% similar
mentir vs monti
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for mentir
PropertyValue
Headwordmentir
LanguageFrench
Part of speechVerb
IPA\mɑ̃.tiʁ\
Letters6
Frequency rank#4,350
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “mentir” sits in French frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). mentir lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for mentir is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \mɑ̃.tiʁ\. Corpus data places it at rank #4,350 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for mentir, with forms such as "emntir", "menitr", and "menntir". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "métis", "munir", "monti", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is mentir, spelled M-E-N-T-I-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Ne pas dire la vérité ; dire quelque chose de contraire à la vérité ; cacher la vérité ; induire volontairement en erreur.
  2. 2
    Déguiser ou cacher le caractère, en parlant du visage, de la physionomie d'une personne.
  3. 3
    Donner un démenti par ses actes.
  4. 4
    (réfléchi) Se persuader à soi-même une chose qu'on sait être fausse.
  5. 5
    (réciproque) Se dire des mensonges les uns aux autres.
  6. 6
    Dire, répondre, manifester quelque chose de mensonger, d’insincère.

Synonyms

mythonermythonnerraconter des cracksraconter des histoiresraconter des saladesavoir la langue fourchue

This word in other languages

lie(English)mentir(Español)flunkern(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: emntir,menitr,menntir,mentirr,mentri,menttir,metnir,mmentir,mnetir

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of mentir - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

emntir2menitr2menntir1mentirr1mentri2menttir1metnir2mmentir1
Edit distance from "mentir"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 French corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "mentir"?
"mentir" is spelled M-E-N-T-I-R. The IPA pronunciation is \mɑ̃.tiʁ\.
What does "mentir" mean?
As a verb, "mentir" means: Ne pas dire la vérité ; dire quelque chose de contraire à la vérité ; cacher la vérité ; induire volontairement en erreur.
What words are commonly confused with "mentir"?
"mentir" is commonly confused with "métis", "munir", "monti". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "mentir"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mentir" is \mɑ̃.tiʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "mentir" come from?
"mentir" is a French word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “mentir”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct French spelling is M-E-N-T-I-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \mɑ̃.tiʁ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “métis” - see the side-by-side comparison. mentir vs métis
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list